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Register a new userInstability of Evaporation Fronts in the Interstellar Medium
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The neutral component of the interstellar medium is segregated into the cold neutral medium (CNM) and warm neutral medium (WNM) as a result of thermal instability. It was found that a plane-parallel CNM-WNM evaporation interface, across which the CNM undergoes thermal expansion, is linearly unstable to corrugational disturbances, in complete analogy with the Darrieus-Landau instability (DLI) of terrestrial flames. We perform a full linear stability analysis as well as nonlinear hydrodynamic simulations of the DLI of such evaporation fronts in the presence of thermal conduction. We find that the DLI is suppressed at short length scales by conduction. The length and time scales of the fastest growing mode are inversely proportional to the evaporation flow speed of the CNM and its square, respectively. In the nonlinear stage, the DLI saturates to a steady state where the front deforms to a finger-like shape protruding toward the WNM, without generating turbulence. The evaporation rate at nonlinear saturation is larger than the initial plane-parallel value by a factor of 2.4 when the equilibrium thermal pressure is 1800 k_B cm^-3 K. The degrees of front deformation and evaporation-rate enhancement at nonlinear saturation are determined primarily by the density ratio between the CNM and WNM. We demonstrate that the Field length in the thermally unstable medium should be resolved by at least four grid points to obtain reliable numerical outcomes involving thermal instability.
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Thermal instability (TI) can strongly affect the structure and dynamics of the interstellar medium (ISM) in the Milky Way and other disk galaxies. Thermal conduction plays an important role in the TI by stabilizing small scales and limiting the size of the smallest condensates. In the magnetized ISM, however, heat is conducted anisotropically (primarily along magnetic field lines). We investigate the effects of anisotropic thermal conduction on the nonlinear regime of the TI by performing two-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulations. We present models with magnetic fields of different initial geometries and strengths, and compare them to hydrodynamic models with isotropic conduction. We find anisotropic conduction does not significantly alter the overall density and temperature statistics in the saturated state of the TI. However, it can strongly affect the shapes and sizes of cold clouds formed by the TI. For example, for uniform initial fields long filaments of cold gas are produced that are reminiscent of some observed HI clouds. For initially tangled fields, such filaments are not produced. We also show that anisotropic conduction suppresses turbulence generated by evaporative flows from the surfaces of cold blobs, which may have implications for mechanisms for driving turbulence in the ISM.
Turbulence is ubiquitous in the insterstellar medium and plays a major role in several processes such as the formation of dense structures and stars, the stability of molecular clouds, the amplification of magnetic fields, and the re-acceleration and diffusion of cosmic rays. Despite its importance, interstellar turbulence, alike turbulence in general, is far from being fully understood. In this review we present the basics of turbulence physics, focusing on the statistics of its structure and energy cascade. We explore the physics of compressible and incompressible turbulent flows, as well as magnetized cases. The most relevant observational techniques that provide quantitative insights of interstellar turbulence are also presented. We also discuss the main difficulties in developing a three-dimensional view of interstellar turbulence from these observations. Finally, we briefly present what could be the the main sources of turbulence in the interstellar medium.
In recent years, a plethora of high spectral resolution observations of sub-mm and FIR transitions of methylidene (CH), have demonstrated this radical to be a valuable proxy for H2, that can be used for characterising molecular gas within the interstellar medium (ISM) on a Galactic scale, including the CO-dark component. Here we report the discovery of the 13CH isotopologue in the ISM using the upGREAT receiver on board SOFIA. We have detected the three hyperfine structure components of the 2THz frequency transition from its ground-state toward four high-mass star-forming regions and determine 13CH column densities. The ubiquity of molecules containing carbon in the ISM has turned the determination of the ratio between the abundances of carbons two stable isotopes, 12C/13C, into a cornerstone for Galactic chemical evolution studies. Whilst displaying a rising gradient with Galactocentric distance, this ratio, when measured using observations of different molecules (CO, H2CO, and others) shows systematic variations depending on the tracer used. These observed inconsistencies may arise from optical depth effects, chemical fractionation or isotope-selective photo-dissociation. Formed from C+ either via UV-driven or turbulence-driven chemistry, CH reflects the fractionation of C+, and does not show any significant fractionation effects unlike other molecules previously used to determine the 12C/13C isotopic ratio which make it an ideal tracer for the 12C/13C ratio throughout the Galaxy. Therefore, by comparing the derived column densities of 13CH with previously obtained SOFIA data of the corresponding transitions of the main isotopologue 12CH, we derive 12C/13C isotopic ratios toward Sgr B2(M), G34.26+0.15, W49(N) and W51E. Adding our values derived from 12/13CH to previous calculations of the Galactic isotopic gradient we derive a revised value of 12C/13C = 5.85(0.50)R_GC + 15.03(3.40).
The interstellar medium is the engine room for galactic evolution. While much is known about the conditions within the ISM, many important areas regarding the formation and evolution of the various phases of the ISM leading to star formation, and its role in important astrophysical processes, remain to be explained. This paper discusses several of the fundamental science problems, placing them in context with current activities and capabilities, as well as the future capabilities that are needed to progress them in the decade ahead. Australia has a vibrant research community working on the interstellar medium. This discussion gives particular emphasis to Australian involvement in furthering their work, as part of the wider international endeavour. The particular science programs that are outlined in this White Paper include the formation of molecular clouds, the ISM of the Galactic nucleus, the origin of gamma-rays and cosmic rays, high mass star and cluster formation, the dense molecular medium, galaxy evolution and the diffuse atomic medium, supernova remnants, the role of magnetism and turbulence in the Galactic ecology and complex organic molecules in space.
Cyanogen (NCCN) is the simplest member of the dicyanopolyynes group, and has been proposed as a major source of the CN radical observed in cometary atmospheres. Although not detected through its rotational spectrum in the cold interstellar medium, this very stable species is supposed to be very abundant. The chemistry of cyanogen in the cold interstellar medium can be investigated through its metastable isomer, CNCN (isocyanogen). Its formation may provide a clue on the widely abundant CN radical observed in cometary atmospheres. We performed an unbiased spectral survey of the L1544 proto-typical prestellar core, using the IRAM-30m and have analysed, for this paper, the nitrogen chemistry that leads to the formation of isocyanogen. We report on the first detection of CNCN, NCCNH+, C3N, CH3CN, C2H3CN, and H2CN in L1544. We built a detailed chemical network for NCCN/CNCN/HC2N2+ involving all the nitrogen bearing species detected (CN, HCN, HNC, C3N, CNCN, CH3CN, CH2CN, HCCNC, HC3N, HNC3, H2CN, C2H3CN, HCNH+, HC3NH+) and the upper limits on C4N, C2N. The main cyanogen production pathways considered in the network are the CN + HNC and N + C3N reactions. The comparison between the observations of the nitrogen bearing species and the predictions from the chemical modelling shows a very good agreement, taking into account the new chemical network. The expected cyanogen abundance is greater than the isocyanogen abundance by a factor of 100. Although cyanogen cannot be detected through its rotational spectrum, the chemical modelling predicts that it should be abundant in the gas phase and hence might be traced through the detection of isocyanogen. It is however expected to have a very low abundance on the grain surfaces compared to HCN.
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